Syracuse softball drops first of two doubleheaders of the weekend against FSU
SU softball drops both games in doubleheader against FSU
The Orange lost to No. 9 ranked Florida State at the Skytop Stadium on Saturday. The doubleheader ended 2-0 against SU with a score of 7-3 in the first game and 9-0 in the second.
The first game started with a hit from Florida State, followed by a stolen base from the player on first base. Then, the top of the first inning was followed by two straight strikeouts, and it ended with a fly ball to right field and a catch from freshman, Angel Jasso.
After two outs on seniors Paris Woods and Gabby Teran, a home run from senior Neli Casares-Maher started the scoring game for the Orange, giving them a 1-0 lead. A hit from Lailoni Mayfield and another one from Jasso opened the base game for SU, but a ground ball to the in-field gave FSU their last out of the inning.
At the top of the second inning, ‘Cuse made their first out on a ground ball from the Seminoles to the shortstop and a catch from Casares-Maher. The third out of the top of the inning came after Jasso caught a fly ball to right field. The bottom of the inning started with an out from Florida State in right field, followed by a strikeout from Rebecca Clyde. After a ground ball from Calista Almer, FSU got their third out of the inning on first base.
Alexa Romero started the third inning with two consecutive strikes, and Almer finished the job after clashing with the fence and catching a foul ball. The second out came after a catch in center field from Toni Martin, followed by a strikeout from Romero, to end the top of the inning.
At the bottom of the inning, a ground ball from Woods led to the first out. Then, Teran started Cuse’s base game with a hit over shortstop. Not long after, a strikeout on Casares-Maher got the second out for the Seminoles, followed by the third out on a catch in right field to end the inning.
After opening the fourth inning with a strike, Florida State entered the scoring game with back-to-back home runs, grabbing the 2-1 lead. The first and second outs came after two fly balls to right and left field. With a Seminole on base, FSU hit another home run to keep the Orange trailing 4-1. Then, the third out came with a strikeout from Romero.
The bottom of the inning started with Jasso on the plate but ended up with the first out for Florida State. A ground ball to first base gave FSU the second out, but Martin gave SU their first hit of the inning. An attempt to steal second base from Martin gave the Seminoles their third out of the inning.
The fifth inning was a silent one with no runs from each side. In the sixth inning, the Seminoles added to their lead with another home run. After the second out from ‘Cuse, another home run from FSU put the score at 6-1. Then, after a pitching change from Syracuse, the Seminoles scored their second home run of the inning, bringing the score to 7-1. After that, Jolie Gustave ended the top of the inning with a strikeout.
A strikeout from Teran started the bottom of the inning, but a walk from SU started the base game for the Orange. The inning ended with two consecutive outs from Florida State, one off a fly ball and the other on first base.
The last inning started with a strikeout from Gustave, followed by a catch from Casares-Maher in the infield. Another catch from Casares-Maher gave ‘Cuse their third out of the top of the inning.
The bottom of the inning started with a walk from Martin, followed by the first out from FSU. An out on first base gave the second out to the Seminoles, but a wild pitch from Florida State sparked Syracuse’s running game, putting the score at 7-2. At the end, a hit from Woods kept SU’s scoring run going, cutting the Orange deficit to four, but a strikeout from FSU ended the game and Syracuse dropped the first of two, 7-3.
Both teams started the second game with the same line-ups, except for a catching and pitching change on Cuse’s side and a pitching change on the Seminoles. The game started with strong defense from both teams, and it wasn’t until the fourth inning that Florida State scored their first run of the game.
The Orange responded with the first out of the inning, but an RBI from Florida State kept their scoring going, 2-0. An out at second base, and another one at first base, brought Syracuse to the plate. A hit from Martin and a fly ball from Maxine Barnes were attempts from the Orange to keep up with FSU’s hitting game, but the three outs came soon after.
SU tried to keep up with the Seminole’s runs, but the batting game from Florida State just kept going. An RBI in the fifth inning added two runs to the score, and a home run from FSU pushed the score to 6-0. A hit from the Seminoles and two defensive errors from the Orange gave the 9-0 victory to Florida State, ending the game in the sixth inning.
SU ended Saturday’s doubleheader with nine hits, three runs, two RBI’s and eight strikeouts. Even though they didn’t win, Syracuse head coach Shannon Doepking was pleased with the performance from the Orange.
“It is what it is. We have nothing to lose and everything to gain playing a team like Florida State because they’re supposed to beat us, that’s why they’re in the Top 10,” said Doepking. “Hopefully we can continue to grow and learn something from playing a team like this, but it was a disappointing game for us.”
A tactic that ‘Cuse was implementing in the doubleheader, said Doepking, was swinging on the first pitch.
“Hopefully, tomorrow we’ll get back at it,” said Coach Doepking. “But mindset wise, we’re going to go down getting swings rather than watching a couple balls and only getting some hits.”
Syracuse will play another doubleheader on Sunday, April 18 against Florida State to compensate for the game postponed on Friday. The games will be played at the Skytop Stadium at 10 and 12 p.m.
is a magazine, news and online graduate student, sports and features writer, plus volleyball enthusiast.
